Her Dragon (Book 2 of The Circle Series)

CHAPTER 23: CAVE I

VALENTINA

Hours passed. I had given up waiting in the library, the excitement from earlier destroyed by my callous tongue. Now I was in the bedroom, equally frustrated and worried and unable to stop pacing.

And I didn’t pace.

I didn’t get anxious.

I didn’t do many things before I fell for this damned dragon. I sure didn’t go around worrying about hurting a grown man’s feelings. Our business was none of Anessa and Giada’s business anyway. He should understand that.

“My lady,” Manuel’s voice calls from the other side of the door, followed by a knock. “You haven’t eaten dinner?” He motions to the untouched tray on the floor. “Was it not to your liking?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“I can have something else prepared for you. His Majesty won’t be happy to hear you’ve missed both lunch and dinner.” His voice comes out steady, but his eyes give away his nervousness.

“Well, he isn’t here now, is he? And whether I eat or not is none of his concern or yours.”

“My apologies, my lady.” He bows his head slightly, and I feel like an asshole. I’m on a roll today.

“I’m the one that should be apologizing. I’m taking my frustration out on you. I’m sorry. Do you happen to know when Amadeo is coming back?”

“His Majesty has asked me to escort you outside. He’s on his way.” He brings me to an open field at the side of the castle where Elena and Amira are waiting with what looks like a hazmat suit.

“Hello again,” Amira says cheerily. “You’ve met my mate, Elena, right?”

Before I can answer, heat radiates above us, and an earth-shaking roar pierces the fire-filled sky.

“Oh, someone’s angry!” Elena says.

Yeah, he is. At me.

Even in the darkness, I can see the hints of red that streak the underside of his wings and his stomach. His dragon is incredible. He circles the sky, and I watch with my head cranked all the way back while his dragon’s magic surrounds me, making my body vibrate. I’ve never felt anything like it, and I can quickly see how addictive the need to feel it could become.

“You need to put this on!” Amira calls out.

“What is it?” I yell, grabbing the suit. The flapping of his wings drowns out my voice, and she has to move closer.

“It’s what I wear when I go flying with Elena, so I don’t freeze. He hasn’t had time to make you one.”

The thought of being in the air makes my legs wobble. Manuel must notice my unease and makes his way to me, carrying a saddle. He drops it to the ground and helps me get into the suit.

Amadeo lands stealthily, tucking his wings close to his body. His tail whips around him back and forth on the ground. The dust floats around him, and I stare, mesmerized.

Manuel pulls my hair from under the suit and gives me a hair tie. Snapping his teeth and baring his fearful, gaping maw, it’s obvious Amadeo's jealous. Manuel steps away from me instantly, but he continues to snarl..

I quickly braid my hair, tuck it into the suit and walk up to the lethal dragon stopping directly in front of him. He leans his massive head with spikes and shiny scales on his front legs, and his amber eyes seem to ignite. I don’t think because if I stop and consider what’s about to happen, I may very well faint. I run my hands under his eyes, around his snout, and across his face and jaw, loving the rough feel of him.

You’re beautiful, Deo. The most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen. His eyes close, almost as if he’s taking pleasure in my touch and my words. When he opens them again, he motions with his head towards his tail for me to climb on. Well, that’s at least what I think he’s doing. I’m not sure how I’m supposed to climb on top of his tail when there are spikes of various sizes all along it.

Elena and Amira step forward to help while Manuel attaches the saddle. The straps remind me of the harness Amadeo put on me our first night together. He broke that one, so hopefully, this is much sturdier.

Elena chuckles. Must I have my block up every second of every day? Is nothing sacred with dragons?

“No,” Elena answers. “Not when you’re practically hurling your thoughts out at us.”

The tips of my ears burn.

“My lady, do you think you’ll remember how to do everything on your own? Or should we take you through it again?” Manuel asks, saving me from further putting my foot in my mouth. My brazenness on the first day I met her has disappeared in the face of this surreal situation.

“She’ll be fine,” Amira smiles reassuringly. “If you can’t remember, he can carry you back in his talons.”

I suck in a deep breath, trying to control the hammering in my chest.

“Where are we going? Do any of you know?”

Elena adjusts the visor on my face and shrugs. “Wherever it is, you make sure you give him hell.”

Amadeo snorts out a small breath of fire. The flames stop no more than a foot away from her feet, but she doesn’t so much as blink.

“No te enojes conmigo, hermanito (Don’t get upset with me, little brother).” She pinches the skin near what I think is his shoulder, and he grunts.

“Did you see that tantrum he just pulled in the sky? Amadeo was extremely spoiled as a dragonling, and now he’s used to getting what he wants with minimal effort on his part. Don’t make anything easy on him.”

I don’t have much time to think about this unexpected allyship because Deo takes flight, and I jolt forward, holding the reins for dear life. My heart pounds to the point where I think it might explode. I close my eyes and lean forward, choosing to wrap my arms around Deo’s neck instead of holding on to the straps. Thank the Goddess for this suit protecting me from the wind. I had never met a dragon before Amadeo, and I had never seen someone do this other than in books.

I close my eyes and run my hands back and forth along his neck. I’m safe. I repeat. Amadeo won’t let anything happen to me. He purrs, and the sound vibrates underneath me as I continue to stroke his scaly skin. I don’t know how long we’ve been in flight when my heart finally calms down, and I open my eyes. All I can see is the sky and nothing below us.

I’m sorry. I finally say, but I’m met with silence.

I’m sorry about what I said, but we need to talk about what you want from me. What is it that you expect from me?

More silence.

Did you hear me!

Suddenly, Deo dives, and I let out an ear-piercing scream as my stomach lurches. I scream until my voice feels hoarse, and it feels like we’ve stopped falling.

Asshole! I scream into his mind.

I’m going to murder him. As soon as I’m on even ground, I will make up a potion and kill this jerk unless I die of a heart attack first.

He does it again, but this time I’m anticipating it, and instead of causing fear in the pit of my stomach, it feels like I’m on a roller coaster. My brain finally stops panicking, and I actually begin to laugh.

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined I would be flying through the clouds and riding a dragon.

I’m. Riding. A. dragon!

Again, I shout. The thrill of the drop causes butterflies to erupt in my stomach before he even makes the descent. He dives once more before landing near the shore. I didn’t even realize we were flying over water.

It’s over much too soon, I realize. I started enjoying it too late in the ride. I quickly undo the straps and pull down the visor. Amadeo lays down on the ground so I can climb down, and then he leads me towards large rocks. He moves them with ease, revealing what looks like an opening.

“Take off the suit.” They’re the first words he’s spoken to me since he left the library, and they’re hollow, void of any emotion. I do as he says and follow him inside, walking slightly behind him in complete darkness.

The intensity of his magic disappears seconds later, and I can’t sense his dragon anymore. Instead, I hear footsteps stop in front of me somewhere and jump when something touches my lips.

“Drink this,” Amadeo says.

“What is it?” I grab the vial from him.

“Just drink it,” he snaps. When I don’t move, he sighs, and I can feel his breath on my face, but I can’t make out any of his features. “It’s a potion to see in here. Or would you prefer to remain in the dark?”

It has a bitter aftertaste, and within seconds the darkness disappears. The cave is lit up with dozens of torches, but that’s not what captures my attention.

It’s the gold.

Everywhere.

The whole place glistens with piles upon piles of treasure. Bars of gold stacked in rows, coins, jewels, and trinkets of all kinds reminds me of just how long he’s been alive. It was common for dragons to go scouring for treasure, oftentimes plundering villages and cities in search of gold.

“No one has been here except you and the witch who first made this.” He tosses the empty vial over his shoulder. “To a stranger who stumbles upon it, it’s a dark and empty cave.”

Giada was right. He's shown me his home and his hoard, and I was quick to dismiss our relationship without talking to him about it.

Amadeo walks around me unabashedly naked. “Are you impressed?” He sneers. “Or do you just think I’m showing off?” He throws my words from earlier today at me.

“Deo—”

He yanks my braid to the side so I can turn my head to look at him, and his eyes blaze red.

“Your clothes are bothering me. Take them off.” His words are gruff, thick with desire, but the anger hasn’t left him.

“Maybe we should talk–”

“Clothes off. Now,” he commands, and even though my mind wants to protest, my body betrays me and obeys.

He walks towards some blankets on the ground and reaches into a black duffle bag that looks awfully like the one we use in his room, and I realize he’s set all this up for me.

He pulls out silk ties, what looks like a velcro contraption, and a vibrator. A bolt of pleasure shoots straight to my core. I shiver since I’m now barefoot on the damp ground and naked, and he misses nothing. Quickly, he arranges some stones and starts a fire in his human form.

He makes his way toward me with the velcro, adjusting the straps around my hips and between my legs. Neither of us says a word as he slips the vibrator under the belts and snugly against my folds.

I’m so screwed.

Amadeo moves behind me and binds my wrists together. “You’re mine,” he whispers in my ear, and I can feel his arousal poking me in the back. “I thought you understood that, but you’ve put an expiry date on us before we’ve even begun. It's unacceptable.”

He guides me to the blankets and then blindfolds me—my heart races in anticipation.

“On your knees.”

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A/N:

Ooof! What are your thoughts on this chapter? My apologies for the lack of chapters this week. Valentina's hard shell is starting to crack, and I'm having a bit of difficulty writing her at the moment.